Latest KFF Health News Stories
Back For An Encore: Your Questions About Insurance Marketplaces
KHN’s Julie Appleby and Mary Agnes Carey, who answered Washington Post reader questions about enrollment in the health law’s new insurance marketplaces last week, are back by popular demand at 12 noon ET today. If you can’t participate in the discussion live, you can submit your questions in advance: http://live.washingtonpost.com/shopping-for-obamacare.html A full transcript of the Q&A session […]
Readers Ask: What Options Do Parents Have To Get Coverage For Their Kids?
Consumer columnist answers questions about getting insurance for children under the health law.
Fight Over Obamacare Is Anything But Over In Florida
The nation’s most diverse political swing state is ground zero in the battle over the federal health law.
After The Floods, Colorado Hospital Braces For Winter
Estes Park Medical Center escaped the flood damage that hit most of the area. But two roads leading to the town known as the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park are impassable. One snowstorm could close the remaining road and ground helicopters, leaving the hospital and its patients stranded.
Federal Judge Throws Out Lawsuit Over Hospital Observation Care
A federal court judge in Hartford, Conn., dismissed a lawsuit Monday which was filed against the government by 14 Medicare beneficiaries who were denied nursing home coverage. Under Medicare rules, only patients admitted to a hospital for at least three consecutive days are eligible for coverage of follow-up nursing home care. The beneficiaries who brought the suit […]
Swapping COBRA For Obamacare Likely To Be Windfall For Big Business
Experts expect people who are between jobs to gradually transfer to exchanges, a trend projected to save large employers billions in medical claims for ex-employees.
How Will Obamacare Affect Workers And Their Health Coverage?
KHN’s Jay Hancock was on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Monday morning taking questions about how the health law will affect the health insurance coverage workers get from their employers and what they need to know. See related stories: FAQ: How Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Is Changing KHN reporters will be returning to C-SPAN’s Washington Journal each Monday […]
Missouri, Illinois Health Insurance Exchanges Gear Up Quietly
In Missouri, a decidedly low-profile campaign stems from a voter referendum last year barring the governor from moving forward on an exchange. In Illinois, officials partnered with the federal government to build the marketplace. Nonetheless, neither exchange has given any cost information to consumers.
What Consumers Really Want From An Obamacare Plan
When consultants ran simulations of the exchanges that open for enrollment Oct. 1, they found that price was a major consideration. But so were hospital networks — more so than retaining doctors.
A Reader Asks: How Can We Be Sure To Get A Policy That Covers Maternity Care?
Currently many plans sold on the individual market do not provide maternity coverage. But that will change under the health law.
Views On Obamacare Closely Track Party Preference In Washington State
In Washington state, 80 percent of Democrats surveyed approve of the Affordable Care Act while 80 percent of Republicans don’t, according to an Elway Poll conducted on behalf of The Seattle Times.
FAQ: Seniors On Medicare Don’t Need To Apply To The Health Law Marketplaces
The online exchanges that open Oct. 1 are not aimed at Medicare beneficiaries, but the 2010 health law does affect seniors in other ways.
Report Looks At Income Disparities For Seniors On Medicare
Lawmakers considering major changes to entitlement programs as part of a deficit reduction package might want to consider this: Future Medicare recipients won’t be much better off financially than current beneficiaries, according to a new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation. In measures of income, savings and home equity, the current disparities that now exist between […]
Insurers’ Letters Spur Washington State Consumer Alert
This story was produced in partnership with The Washington state insurance commissioner issued a consumer alert Thursday advising state residents who buy their own health insurance to know their options when choosing their next health plan. The commissioner’s office issued the alert in response to dozens of phone calls and emails from consumers upset by […]
Census: More Than 850,000 Texas Kids Lack Health Coverage
This story was produced in partnership with Texas continued to have the highest rate of people without health insurance in 2012 at 24.6 percent, or more than 6 million residents, according to the Current Population Survey estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau this week. Texas also has the largest number of children without health […]
In Most States, Policies Will be Sold Outside The Health Law Marketplace
Those plans must also provide the same “essential benefits” as the plans set up for the exchanges and have similar out-of-pocket standards.
Health Law Caught In The Middle Of Budget Fight
With implementation of major provisions of the law looming, Republicans see this fall’s budget showdown as their last chance to slow or stop the president’s signature legislation from taking effect. Mary Agnes Carey and Politico Pro’s Jennifer Haberkorn discuss.
FAQ: Obamacare And Coverage For Immigrants
The federal overhaul will help some immigrants who are not citizens gain insurance, but there are no provisions to help those who are in the country illegally.
Expect Snags As The Affordable Care Act Rolls Out
Even proponents of the federal health law have the same expectation: The rollout of the biggest new social program in nearly 50 years is not going to be pretty.
Different Types Of Marketplace Plans Expected To Be Available
Number of policies offered will vary depending on the state.